1997’s The Saint, starring Val Kilmer in the titular role, was an underrated gem in the late-’90s/early-’00s action oeuvre. Since then, it’s become something of a cult classic, with Paramount hinting for quite some time they were kicking around the idea of a reboot.

And now that reboot has apparently found its leading man in Chris Pine. Variety reports that Pine is in late-stage negotiations to secure the role of the Saint, a.k.a. Simon Templar, a globetrotting thief for hire. Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman) will be directing the film based on a script by Seth Grahame-Smith (The Lego Batman Movie). Lorenzo Di Bonaventura will also be producing with Brad Krevoy and Mark Vahradian. Notably, Robert Evans, who produced the first film but died in 2019, will also be credited as producer for the reboot.

If done well, this could be a new spy-thriller franchise for Paramount. Based on the series of books written in the 1920s by Leslie Charteris, the debonair, smooth-talking Templar is a character who is a master of disguise. His moniker, The Saint, was given due to his penchant for never giving his real name but using a string of fake aliases based on Catholic saints.

It’s unclear what the story for the reboot will be. The plot of the 1997 film involved Templar being hired by the Russian Mafia to steal the formula for cold fusion from scientist Emma Russell. But Templar falls in love with the intelligent, well-intentioned Russel and he double-crosses the Russians. He and Russell must work together to complete the formula and stay one step ahead of the Russian Mafia.

With the timeline for productions currently being up in the air, it’s unclear when this will go into production. Dexter Fletcher was previously announced to be also working on Dracula spinoff Renfield for Universal, based on a pitch by The Walking Dead‘s Robert Kirkman. The project is not to be confused with the Dracula movie that Blumhouse is currently developing with Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body, Destroyer) set to direct.

But no castings have yet been announced for Renfield, so this project will likely become the next priority project for Fletcher, especially as it’s possible Universal is waiting to see what Blumhouse comes up with. As for Pine, he’s recently coming off his well-received limited series for TNT, We Are the Night, and has recently wrapped production for Tarik Saleh’s Violence of Action. In the meantime, you can next see Pine in the upcoming Wonder Woman 1984, which is (as of now, at least) set to hit theaters on August 14th.